New Year's holiday sees spirituality in demand

BEIJING - Tens of thousands of people visited temples to burn incense and pray for good fortune during the Spring Festival holiday, amid a rising demand for spiritual comfort throughout the country.

On Feb 3, about 66,000 people went to the Yonghegong Lama Temple in Beijing. That was about 3,000 more than had gone on the first day of the holiday in 2010, and half of the visitors who came in 2011 were young , according to the temple's management committee.

Feb 3 marked the first day of the Spring Festival this year, officially starting the Year of the Rabbit, according to the Chinese Zodiac.